<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>If fate means you to lose give him a good fight anyhow by smaragdbird</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22511563">If fate means you to lose give him a good fight anyhow</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/smaragdbird/pseuds/smaragdbird'>smaragdbird</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Clash of the Titans (2010)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Ixas is not dealing as well with all the monsters as he pretends to, M/M, Missing Scene</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 09:22:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,016</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22511563</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/smaragdbird/pseuds/smaragdbird</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The night before they journey into the underworld, Eusebios asks Ixas for a distraction.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Eusebios/Ixas</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>New Year's Resolutions 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>If fate means you to lose give him a good fight anyhow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bakcheia/gifts">Bakcheia</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was the story I meant to write for yuletide 2010.</p><p>So...uhm...happy 2020 </p><p>Hope you like it</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A part of him relishes in this kind of adventure, giant monsters and oracles and now the underworld, the kind of adventure heroes had in the stories he heard as a child. The kind of adventure he always wanted to have and return home to tell others about. That was partially why he had signed up to the city guard, not only of course because even as a young man he had known that a city guard didn’t go on journeys like the heroes of old.</p><p>It seemed he had been quite mistaken about that one.</p><p>He had been trained to take care of bandits and criminals, at most an invading army, not gods and monsters. Draco had barely even batted an eyelash at the giant scorpions and Solon grumbled about witches the same way he used to grumble about thugs.</p><p>Eusebios though kept looking over his shoulder to see how Ixas was dealing with the situation, which meant that Ixas had keep his calm like Draco and pretend this was nothing out of the ordinary like Solon. He knew he hadn’t helped his situation by telling the story of every monster and place they had come across so far. Almost inevitably the others turned to him whenever there was a question asked and almost equally inevitably he knew the answer.</p><p>But just because he knew the stories, didn’t mean he had ever wanted to meet any of these creatures from them. He had to have been a fool to want to. And yet they were going to walk straight into Medusa’s lair and take her head to protect Argos from the Kraken.</p><p>Sure, why not, maybe they could slay a Minotaur on the way or visit the Gardens of the Hesperides.</p><p>Perhaps his thoughts were a little hysterical but he figured he deserved that. </p><p>“Hey.” He looked up when Eusebios appeared at his side and sat down close enough that their shoulders were touching. “So, the underworld.”</p><p>Ixas gave him an amused look. “You were the first one to volunteer for it.”</p><p>“I know”, Eusebios ducked his head. “It just felt wrong, to let him do this alone. Besides if we don’t succeed, what hope is there for Argos?”</p><p>They could sacrifice the Princess, Ixas didn’t say it out loud. </p><p>“Do you know any stories?” Eusebios asked, “About people who went to Hades and came back?”</p><p>“A few”, Ixas admitted, his first thought being of Orpheus and Eurydice. But the night before they ventured into the underworld was not a night for sad stories. “Do you want to hear the foolish one or the heroic one?”</p><p>“Solon would say that walking into Hades is always foolish”, Eusebios replied with a smile on his face. </p><p>“And yet he volunteered to do it himself”, Ixas said. They were all fools but what difference did it made if they died in Medusa’s temple or crushed by the Kraken in Argos? “So let me tell you about Theseus and how he tried to help his friend kidnap a queen.”</p><p>One of the things Ixas had learned early one was to twist a story according to the needs of his audience. Tonight, on a mission to the underworld and perhaps into their death, he played up the foolishness of Pirithous and Theseus from the conception of their plan to its execution.</p><p>Not that they didn’t have a good plan to deal with Medusa either, or any plan really, but right now that didn’t matter. His story made Eusebios laugh, eased the lines of his face and brought the light back to his blue eyes.</p><p>Their fire was burning down and he should really either get more wood or wake one of the others to take over his watch but he felt comfortable right now. Eusebios was resting his head on Ixas’ shoulder, a warm, reassuringly heavy weight. </p><p>“Thank you”, he whispered as the silence stretched comfortably between them.</p><p>“What for?” Ixas asked, tilting his head slightly towards Eusebios.</p><p>“For distracting me.”</p><p>“You’re welcome”, Ixas replied, a small laugh in his voice. He didn’t know how well a distraction worked if you knew it to be one, but maybe that didn’t matter.</p><p>“Now it’s my turn”, Eusebios said and before Ixas could ask him what he meant, Eusebios had already pressed their lips together. </p><p>It had been a while. Since the last time they had been out in the field together. They tended to go their separate way when in Argos since not only was Eusebios’ family higher ranked than Ixas’ but they had also high hopes for him. Ixas’ father was only relieved that he hadn’t become a wandering bard.</p><p>Despite the time that had passed, there was familiarity in their kiss and with it, comfort. Eusebios wound his fingers into Ixas’ hair to pull him closer as if they weren’t already pressed against each other. It was the kind of kiss that could last a life time, that promised long nights by the fire together until they were grey and old. If Ixas could capture what this kiss meant in words, his name would live on as the greatest poet of all times, forever.</p><p>As they separated, Ixas leaned their foreheads together, gripping the back of Eusebios’ neck to keep him close. “Thank you”, it was his turn to say it now, to show his gratitude for the distraction, for this moment.</p><p>Ixas heard someone else move in camp and let go of Eusebios. Draco appeared and dismissed them with a flicker of his head. They exchanged a few words about the watch and the quiet, not surprising considering how close they were to the entrance of Hades, before Eusebios grabbed his hand and tugged him in the direction of their tent.</p><p>There was no urgency, no desperate hunger at what might their last night together. They knew each other and knew that neither of them had any regrets. If they died tomorrow, then that would be it. And if they didn’t…well, who knew what the future would bring? After all, Ixas was a storyteller not an oracle.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Find me <a href="http://smaragdbird.tumblr.com/"> here</a> on tumblr</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>